Perspective

Excerpts of remarks by EPRI’s Jeffery Preece, U.S. DOE’s Catherine Clarke, Cummins’ Traci Kraus, Energy Futures Initiative’s Alex Kizer, and Third Way’s Rudra Kapila.

“I am asked all the time, 'If we go to all electric vehicles, won’t it break the grid?' The answer is yes, if we do nothing, but it can be the solution to the grid if we do this right.”

“For EVs to become a resource rather than a challenge to grid stability, we urgently need to see coordinated plans for grid expansion and enhancement, as well as digital technologies for two-way communications and pricing between EVs and grids.”

PUF presents two companies driving the EV revolution. EY Americas has experts focused on collaboration across the ecosystem and helping clients embrace EV adoption. Fermata Energy was founded with intentions of accelerating the adoption of electric vehicles and the transition to renewable energy.

“Achieving a competitive dispensed price for hydrogen fuel is a challenge – even with IRA support – due to the complex supply chain involved in getting hydrogen fuel to the pump.”

“Most C&I leaders want help achieving efficiency or cleaner energy goals. The good news for utilities is they are among the top of the list of providers large energy consumers would trust for support. But in the data we also see other potential providers they might go to for help.”

“Con Edison developed an auto-scheduler application that integrates key data into a single platform by leveraging technology and knowledge of seasoned employees to develop business logic for planning and decision making. Dominion Energy launched a net metering chatbot that utilizes machine learning to more efficiently provide information to customers.”

Decarbonization policies will impact utilities, the grid, and planning.

“The reality is that how regulators rule on the accessibility and availability of utility data may determine whether a state can remotely achieve state decarbonization goals.”

“Nobody wants to touch a 20-year-old server, PLC, HMI or human machine interface, an engineering workstation in operational environment, and allow some computer or automated capability to block it. Putting automated detection and response capabilities in place for critical infrastructure is, for lack of a better term, critical.”